Kadakkal and Perinad, formally gained a place in Kerala's IT map on Thursday. The recently inaugurated Technolodges in these two places became FULLY operational.

Accentia Technologies, a Technopark-based company specialising in IT solutions for health care, financial and insurance sectors, has set up satellite centres at the two Technolodges.

About 300 employees can work across three shifts at the two centres. “We have already appointed about 50 professionals for both the locations. They have been undergoing training at our Technopark facility and 28 of them were placed today at our Kadakkal and Perinad offices,” said Pradeep Vishwambharan, CEO, Accentia Technologies. “We are recruiting professionals from Kollam district for the two centres and they will be placed by the end of September this year.”

The professionals recruited are being trained to cater to non-voice legal and business transcription.

Creating jobs

“The Technolodge initiative is the result of Kerala government's ambitious vision to take software exports business to small towns and villages and encourage BPO companies to operate from low-cost rural centres and thereby create employment in rural areas. Accentia was the first company that came forward to set up a BPO in Kadakkal and Perinad,” said Technopark CEO Mervin Alexander.

He said the formal commencement of operations would encourage other IT companies to set up similar centres in rural areas, providing a major boost to local talent.

The State government has invested Rs.18.5 lakh on refurbishing the building at Kadakkal while the investment for Perinad was Rs.27.4 lakh. Both the Technolodges have common facilities like discussion rooms, pantry space, wash area, reception and back-up power generators.

The Technolodge project is executed by the Kerala State IT Infrastructure Limited (KSITIL). The government is pursuing an ambitious plan to establish 100 Technolodges across the State. Over 60 panchayats have come forward offering facilities to set up Technolodges.

Technolodges are set up in small towns and villages where unutilised land or buildings are available with the government or local self-government institutions. KSITIL will bear the investment cost for construction of buildings, furnishing, electrification and broadband connectivity.

Hotel Leelaventure Ltd. operates The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts in Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Kovalam (Kerala), Gurgaon and Udaipur. Located in key business and leisure destinations, The Leela is a blend of aesthetic sensibility, modern amenities and truly reflects the essence of India. New hotels will soon open in New Delhi (2010) and Chennai (2011); with plans to develop hotels in Agra, Hyderabad, Pune and Lake Ashtamudi in Kerala. The group has marketing alliances with Germany based Kempinski (Hoteliers since 1897); US based Preferred Hotel Group and are members of Global Hotel Alliance based in Geneva, Switzerland.

KOLLAM: Industries Minister Elamaram Karim said here on Friday that the government had taken a decision to include a representative of the workers of a company on the director board of the respective public sector undertaking. He was inaugurating a State-level Human Resource Development programme for workers and employees of the pubic sector undertakings at Chavara, near here, on Friday.

Mr. Karim said as a result of the efforts taken by the State government during the past four years, PSUs in the State had become highly competitive. A pay revision was effected in all PSUs in the State. Out of 37 PSUs, 32 are making operational profits, he said.

Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd. had earned the highest profit of Rs.70 crore, the Minister said.

All vacancies in the PSU had been filled. He said the appointment process to the KMML would be totally transparent.

The Mainline Electric Multiple Unit (MEMU) will conduct service six days a week except Sundays.

The MEMU train 357 from Ernakulam to Kollam will leave Ernakulam at 2.45 p.m. and reach Kollam at 6.40 p.m., while Kollam -Ernakulam MEMU (356) will start at 10.05 a.m. from Kollam and reach Ernakulam at 2.20 p.m. The train will stop at all the stations enroute.

Though it is certain that the service will begin soon, the exact dates have not been finalised yet, the Railways said.

The introduction of these services is expected to go a long way in solving the problems of the commuters.

KOLLAM: The much-awaited solid waste management plant for Kollam city at Kureepuzha will be commissioned by Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan on July 29.

The Rs.13-crore plant has been constructed by the Jamshedpur Utility and Services Company Ltd., a Tata enterprise. Kollam Corporation Health standing committee chairperson Prasanna Earnest told The Hindu that the plant would have the capacity to treat 40 tonnes of waste a day.

As part of the garbage disposal programme, the Corporation has purchased 57 tipper autorickshaws to be deployed for collection of garbage. These autorickshaws, to be driven by women, were bought at a cost of Rs.1.11 crore under the Asian Development Bank-aided Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project.

The Corporation has 52 divisions and each division will be served by an autorickshaw. The remaining five will be kept as standby. Sixty-five women have been trained to drive the vehicles and the licences for the same have been provided to them.

Kollam in Kerala has a pristine natural beauty that has the capability of rejuvenating even the most jaded of travellers. Now the appeal of the place is enhanced manifold by the presence of India's award winning and first ayurvedic spa, Somatheeram coming to the Cashew City in tie-up with the first five-star Ecotel Hotel in Kollam, the Beach Orchid.

Somatheeram will have eight sea facing treatment rooms at the Beach Orchid and will provide different treatments for body and beauty care. Orchid Somatheeram has a team of eminent doctors providing ayurvedic solutions using herbal ingredients to ameliorate modern day ailments caused by lifestyle iniquities. In the calm beach ambience their treatment will ease the mind, cool the body and a holistic renovation of the soul is the result. The treatment plan is customised to individual regime and needs and hence ensures that the guest’s stay at the Beach Orchid will now be healthier and further enhanced.

One remarkable fact about these treatments is that they are directed towards fortifying the immunity system and therefore precluding the chances of disease. In other words, it is aimed at not only at the sick but the healthy ones too among us who want to remain so.

The Beach Orchid, which has earned a reputation for its excellent guest experience, can now offer holistic treatments and therapies also to the guests. The treatment rooms provide direct view of the Arabian Sea and are impeccably clean and roomy. The Orchid Somatheeram Ayurvedic Centre recognises the fact that a balanced diet is an indispensable part of ayurvedic treatments and hence during treatment period an ayurvedic menu drawn up by an efficient team of doctors will be provided as per requirement.

Lifeline for Chinnakada underpass - Nod to start construction in ten days

No final agreement: Railways

Railways agreed to consider the proposal in principle

KOLLAM: Mayor V. Rajendrababu on Friday said the Railways had agreed to permit Kollam Corporation to start civil work for the Chinnakada underpass project on the 18 cents owned by the former.

Thiruvananthapuram Divisional Railway Manager Rajiv Dutt Sharma, who participated in the talks, told The Hindu that no such agreement was reached at a high-level meeting held at the Secretariat. He said the Railways had in principle agreed to consider the proposal of the Corporation.

The Railways wanted the Corporation to submit a detailed project proposal through the State government. Mr. Sharma said on receipt of the proposal, the same would be forwarded to the general manager's office of the Southern Railways for a decision.

He said no agreement was reached to exchange the Chinnakada property of the Railways for the Karbala junction property of the Corporation.

The Chinnakada land is required for constructing an approach road to the underpass, which is needed to ease traffic congestion there.

The Mayor, however, said the Railways had agreed to give conditional permit for starting construction at Chinnakada in ten days. The meeting was called by Chief Secretary P. Prabakaran.

KOLLAM: Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan unveiled a plaque to mark the laying of the foundation stone for the Perumon road bridge over Ashtamudi Lake to link Pezhamthuruthu, of the Munroethuruthu group of islands, with the mainland. The function was presided over by Education Minister M.A. Baby.

On completion, the bridge will be 408-metre long and 7.50-metre wide. There will be a footpath (1.5-metre wide) on either side. The length of each pile will be 45 metre as the lake is 35-foot deep in the area where the bridge is coming up. The bridge will comprise eleven spans of 37.07 metre each. The approach roads will be 190 metre long.

The demand for such a bridge is decades old, Mr. Achuthanandan said. He sought the active participation of the people in ensuring the timely completion of the work being taken up at a cost of Rs.20 crore.

The State had made tremendous progress in basic infrastructure development in the past four years. The construction of the Perumon bridge is testimony to that, he said.

Welfare, development and peace should be the primary priorities of any government. The Opposition had initially criticised the government. The critics are now silent as all-round progress is evident, he said. The State had shown progress in the law and order front, he added.

He inaugurated a new building for the Kundara Primary Health Centre. Ministers C. Divakaran and P.K. Gurudasan and MPs, N. Peethambara Kurup and K.N. Balagopal spoke.

The construction of the temporary bridge connecting Beach Road with Kollam beach has started yesterday. The temporary bridge is constructed to demolish the old bottlenecj bridge that is more than 100 years old. The bridge has only 3.5 metres width now and hardly one vehicle can pass through the bridge at a time. The new bridge that is coming up will have 7.5 metres of road width apart from footpaths on either side of the bridge. The new bridge will be constructed with more elevation above the Kollam canal for the smooth passage of Barges and Luxur cruises under the bridge.

A allocation of 2.10 crore has been made for this project out of the 15 crores as part of Kollam Vision 2010 development program.

The bridge construction is expected to be completed by Decemeber 2010. After the bridge is completed and the Kollam Beach renovation works are over, the beach road passing through the new bridge is expected be one of the most heavy traffic stretches.

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The historic but bottlenecked Kochupilamoodul bridge will be demolished today for the construction of a 10.5 metre bridge with footpaths on either side. The historic bridge is over the Kollam Canal near the beach in the city. The bridge is one of the oldest bridges in the city and is a major bottleneck during the evening time.

The bridge is expected to be completed by November 2010. Traffic through this route has been diverted to pass through the Pukayila Pandashala bridge route. A temporary bridge for cycles and pedestrials have been completed.

KOLLAM: The apex market of the Kollam district-level Swasharaya Karshaka Sangham (SKS) Consortium constituted by the district Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK) was inaugurated on Thursday by Agriculture Minister Mullakkara Ratnakaran.

In his address, Mr. Ratnakaran said this year's target of fruit and vegetable procurement by the VFPCK had been raised to Rs.200 crore from Rs.160 crore planned earlier. He said with an additional 3,000 hectares coming under vegetable and fruit cultivation this year, the total acreage under vegetable and fruit cultivation in the State will go up to 25,000 hectares. He hoped the membership of farmers in the VFPCK would touch 1.5 lakh this year. The Minister said the apex market system would serve to bring farmers and consumers closer. The apex market will assist local vegetable farmers to sell their produce by coordinating the 16 VFPCK fair price procurement markets in various parts of the district. Through the process, native fruits and vegetables will be made available to the customers at wholesale and retail prices.

The apex market will also promote export of locally farmed fruits and vegetables and encourage farmers to make use of e-trade facilities to expand sales. Orders will be taken from traders, individuals and establishments.

The apex market will purchase fertilizers and farming gadgets at wholesale rates and sell these to farmers at fair prices. Promotion of value-added farm products and agriculture-based industries will be encouraged.

Mayor V. Rajendrababu presided over the inaugural function.

Identity cards of the SKS Consortium were distributed to farmers. The card distribution is a step towards enabling farmers to avail themselves of railway concession. K.N. Balagopal, Rajya Sabha member, gave away the prizes to the best VFPCK procurement centres in the district.

Railways to get 1.22 acres of land near Karbala Junction for MEMU yard construction in lieu of the 16.5 cents given to the Underpass construction

Another proposal has been mooted as Kollam Corporation is ready to give 3 acres of land near the Upasana hospital side for the 2nd terminal for Kollam Junction Railway station in lieu of the 3.25 acres of land near the SMP Palace for corporation's prestigious Bus Terminal project.

The longest NH passing through Kollam will be NH - 66. NH-66 will connect Kollam to Panvel near to the biggest city in India, Mumbai. So, now we can boast of an NH that almost connects Kerala to Mumbai.